Spatail data enabled engineering, construction, and operations computer-aided design (CAD) project system, method and computer program product

ABSTRACT

A system and method of geo-spatially viewing project oriented data relating to engineering, construction, and operations (ECO) computer-aided design (CAD) services online using a browser-based viewer can include a three-tiered client/server architecture for accessing a database storing a plurality of files, each of which is stored as a series of components including spatial information. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a system, method and computer program product includes a browser-based project-oriented, collaboration system including a viewer operative to enable viewing of at least one of a business, a project, and a person, geospatially according to geospatial attributes associated with the business, project or person.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This patent application is related to the following co-pendingpatent applications: (a) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/296,738,filed Apr. 22, 1999, for a “System for Collaborative Engineering UsingComponent and File-Oriented Tools”; (b) U.S. Ser. No. 09/586,786, filedJun. 5, 2000, for a “System, Method and Computer Program Product forGenerating a Viewable Computer Aided Design (CAD) Eplof” (AttorneyDocket No. 36488-160032); (c) U.S. Ser. No. 09/586,786 filed Jun. 5,2000, for a “System and Method to Maintain Real-Time Synchronization ofData In Different Fornats” (Attorney Docket No. 36488-160120); (d) U.S.Ser. No. 09/586,7852, filed Jun. 5, 2000, for a “System and Method ofProviding Engineering, Construction, and Operations Computer-AidedDesign Services” (Attorney Docket No. 36488-160028), and (e) U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 09/233,168, filed Sep. 18, 2000,for a “Spatial Data Enabled Engineering, Construction, and OperationsComputer Aided (CAD) Project System, Method and Computer ProgramProduct” (Attorney Docket No. 36488-174924) each of which is commonlyassigned to the assignee of the present invention, and is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention is directed generally to systems andmethods related to computer-aided design (CAD) software, and morespecifically to such systems and methods of providing engineering,construction, and operations CAD software application services over theInternet.

[0004] 2. Related Art

[0005] CAD software is well known, and is used by architects, engineers,artists, and the like to create precision drawings and technicalillustrations. CAD software is used to create two-dimensional (2-D)drawings and three-dimensional (3-D) models. Applications such as, e.g.,MicroStation™ products, which are developed by Bentley Systems, Inc.,Exton, Pa. U.S.A., and AutoCAD® products, which are developed byAutodesk, Inc., San Rafael, Calif., U.S.A., are typical of such CADsoftware, which may be used in the engineering, construction, andoperations (ECO) marketplace. Also illustrative of the systems andmethods used in the ECO marketplace are: U.S. Pat. No. 5,815,415 for a“Computer System for Portable Persistent Modeling”; U.S. Pat. No.5,987,242 for an “Object-Oriented Computerized Modeling System”; andco-pending U.S. Ser. No. 09/296,738, filed Apr. 22, 1999, for a “Systemfor Collaborative Engineering Using Component and File-Oriented Tools”,each of which is commonly assigned to the assignee of the presentinvention, and is incorporated herein by reference.

[0006] Heretofore in the ECO marketplace, CAD software has mosttypically been used in one of two scenarios. Small- to medium-sizedbusinesses, on the one hand, have deployed solutions such as AutoCAD ina standalone or networked environment. On the other hand, large,multinational businesses in the architectural, engineering, andconstruction (AEC) industries have deployed far-flung networks of robustsolutions such as MicroStation. The relative costs of these solutionsvary widely, depending in large part on the size and scalability of theprojects in which they will be used. Nevertheless, the costs of thesesolutions represent but a small portion of the money spent in the ECOmarketplace.

[0007] Every constructed asset has a life cycle of engineering,construction, and operations, which involves multiple disciplines (e.g.,contractors, consultants, and subcontractors). Both unique in its designand uniquely located, each project typically requires a complex networkof professionals and trades, which are themselves a unique gathering foreach project. The supply chain for constructed assets is, therefore,enormous. As a result, managing that supply chain is an enormous task.

[0008] It has been found that as much as sixty percent of the nearly$3.6 trillion spent each year for construction goes to labor and notmaterials. Of course, the various trades account for most of this.However, it turns out that $30 billion is spent each year for designprofessionals to generate nearly eight million engineering drawings. Aneven greater amount of time and money is spent in finding andinterpreting information embedded in those engineering drawings.Accordingly, it should be readily appreciated that engineering drawingsare an essential technology of information integration in the ECOmarketplace. It would be highly desirable, therefore, to provide CADsoftware for the ECO marketplace that reduces the time and money spentto generate engineering drawings, as well as finding and interpretinginformation embedded in those engineering drawings.

[0009] One approach that has been used in the past to simplify theprocesses of generating, finding, and interpreting engineering drawingshas been to deploy CAD software over a project “extranet.” Such projectextranets help to automate the first (i.e., planning) stage ofconstruction by removing inefficiencies of communications andcoordination. Nevertheless, improvement of the first-stage designcommunications costs eventually reaches a point of diminishing returns.

[0010] It has been tempting in the past to suggest that the next stepfor improving management of construction projects would be to haveeveryone involved in a project concurrently online, in real time.However simple this suggestion might be, it ignores the real nature ofthe work being done. The many-varied workgroups in a design/constructionvalue chain require absolute stability, with well-defined points ofdeparture. For example, design, procurement, and installation of atypical heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system not only takestime, but also cooperation. “Long-transaction” commerce considerationscome into play. Unfortunately, conventional asset engineering systemsand methods have simply overlooked the need to provide essentials suchas change merging, integrity checking, and versioning.

[0011] What has been lacking in most such systems and methods is“straight-through” processing. In straight-through processing,information captured at every step is encapsulated. Any element ofinformation, once created, can be uniquely identified and reused insubsequent transactions. With constructed-asset supply chains, however,attempts to use similar such processes have more often than not beenthwarted by the opaqueness of monolithic CAD files, where the smallestnegotiable unit of information is the drawing. Trained professionals canpainstakingly interpret drawings, in their full context, butconventional systems and methods have been unable to penetrateconventional drawings and extract useful data. Moreover, the commonpractice in such systems is to transmit those drawings as raster files.It would be desirable, therefore, to provide a system and method whichovercomes these obstacles.

[0012] Beyond the problems noted above, conventional systems also havesuffered from two additional problems. Systems such as AutoCAD arerelatively inexpensive. However, they are generally not sufficientlyscalable to be used in large and complex projects, and regardless oftheir relatively low cost, inaccessible to many in the constructiontrades who are averse to computers. It would also be desirable,therefore, to provide CAD software which would not only be relativelyinexpensive, but also scalable, robust, and easy-to-use.

[0013] A more recent attempt to achieve these goals has been thedeployment of “project hosting” by application service providers (ASPs),such as ProjectPoint by buzzsaw.com. ASPs, in general, provide acontractual service offering to deploy, host, manage, and rent access toan application from a centrally managed facility. ASPs are responsiblefor either directly or indirectly providing all of the specificactivities and expertise aimed at managing a specialized softwareapplication or set of applications. However, ASPs such as buzzsaw.comface a significant disadvantage. Their websites are most often run froma library of static pages, which are created in Hypertext MarkupLanguage (HTML) under control of ActiveX™ (developed by MicrosoftCorporation, Redmond, Wash. U.S.A).

[0014] HTML is perhaps the most portable of today's markup languages. Itis supported by over 100 million Web browsers, and has become the defacto standard for transmitting information between people. HTML hasmany advantages, not the least of which is that HTML browsers aretypically free. They are very powerful, have a combination ofthird-party add-ins and server-side content support, and a vast range ofinformation is being delivered to HTML browsers. HTML document browserinterfaces are easy to build into existing products because of thesimplicity of HTML. HTML is easy to learn because it is very simple.There are only a couple dozen tags, but less than half of them are usedin most situations. In working with HTML for just a few years, it hasbecome very evident to users that the hypertext model really does workacross systems that are otherwise unrelated. Any page can link to anyother publicly accessible page simply by entering the address. There aresome specialized structures in HTML, but the structures are mostly usedto effect a certain formatting look. Because of the simplicity and lowcost of HTML, a huge information base has been formed that makes HTMLeven more valuable.

[0015] HTML's simplicity, while making it valuable as a basic way ofdelivering simply structured information, causes it to fall short ofbeing a long-term method of delivering complex information types. HTMLis a very weak presentation tool that lacks even the most fundamentalpage-oriented formatting capabilities, such as, e.g., hanging indents,white-space control, justification, kerning, and hyphenation. HTML doesnot handle multiple-column snaking very well, either. However, becauseof the nearly universal compatibility, web site designers are gettingaround these problems by using tables to fake multiple columns andindents, GIF graphics to create certain designs with type and whitespace, and other such machinations. In such cases, HTML itself hassimply become a shell that contains the real markup.

[0016] HTML is also a weak markup tool, because it does not allow forcreating custom tags or presenting tags with different styles. There isno real modularity or hierarchical relationships between elements. Thislimits HTML to delivering page-oriented information instead of being amethod to deliver intelligent information. HTML provides linkingcapabilities, but the linking is rudimentary; it is only a one-to-onelink, and requires an anchor on the target end in order to accessanything within the document. This is fine for most purposes, but suchsimple linking capabilities will limit HTML's long-term viability.

[0017] Another major problem with HTML is its instability. First, therewas HTML, then HTML+, then HTML 2, then a series of decimal-pointspecifications in the threes, and now a level-4 HTML. Browsermanufacturers have also created extensions to the “standard” HTML, likethe “blink” and “center” tags. This has caused other browsermanufacturers to play “catch-up”. The combination of this instabilityand HTML's simplicity has caused a situation where there are numerouscodes that break when presented in a browser. The presence of “BestViewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer”, or “Optimized for Netscape”banners attests to the fact that a page has been crafted to work bestwith a particular browser, at the expense of all of the others.

[0018] This balkanization of HTML has made webmasters and usersfrustrated and looking for a better solution. One way the HTML keepersare trying to extend HTML is by providing the ability to create morecustomized styles, while keeping the same markup. This is being done bycascading style sheets (CSS), which is a technical recommendation by theW3C (World Wide Web Consortium). CSS separates structure (i.e., HTMLmarkup) from format (i.e., how it looks). While this is a good step,users are still stuck with the basic HTML tag set.

[0019] HTML's predecessor, the Standard Generalized Markup Language(SGML), is an international standard that is more than ten years old. Itwas originally designed to provide a way of describing text-basedinformation so organizations could interchange information easily. Sincethen, SGML has become valuable in describing information sets socompanies can get beyond the restrictions of paper-only publishing. SGMLprovides a way of creating markup languages customized for each documenttype, and separating the content from eventual formatting.

[0020] SGML is not tied to a particular operating system or application,and so it is portable from platform to platform. It is a standardmaintained by the International Standards Organization (ISO). This meansthat it is very stable and while there are provisions for updating andchanging ISO standards, the organization makes it very difficult to doso. This has turned out to be a real advantage, since it providescompanies with a known syntax.

[0021] Because of the standing of SGML as a stable standard, there aremany products available in every category, from editors to documentmanagement solutions, to typesetting and web delivery applications. Manyvendors are providing tools and support in each category. These productsrange in price from free to very expensive. Since SGML is platformindependent, these tools can be mixed and matched as desired, relievingcompanies of the risk of having their information locked into onevendor's product. SGML does not provide a fixed set of tags, but,rather, a syntax for creating your own tags. Many industries have formedconsortia for the purpose of creating common tag sets to interchangeinformation using their terms and expressions.

[0022] Notwithstanding its many advantages, SGML is complicated tounderstand and difficult to integrate into an application. SGML requiresa “parser”, which is difficult to write and maintain. Since SGML wascreated in the early days of desktop computers, it is overly concernedwith maximizing limited memory and disk space by providing a complex setof “minimization” rules and exceptions. This complexity results in SGMLbeing more expensive than a simple tag set like HTML. Each document musthave a “document type definition” created, which requires the owner ofthe document to perform a “document analysis” to discover its structure.Also, because of the complexity of the standard, and the smaller marketfor vendors, tools that support SGML are more expensive than those thatsupport HTML.

[0023] Another document format, the “portable document format” (PDF),was developed by Adobe Systems Inc., in order to provide asystem-independent way of delivering page-based information. PDF filesare created by printing to a PDF driver or by so-called “distilling” aPostScript file. The resulting PDF file can be read using a tool fromAdobe called “Acrobat Reader,” which is freely available on most popularsystems in use today.

[0024] PDF provides electronic pages with impressive page fidelity.Type, graphics, and color are all reproduced as they are on paper. Evenhot links and other electronic object types, like movies and sounds, canbe added to a PDF file. PDF files are inexpensive to create, and areused by many companies to deliver page-formatted information without thehigh cost of postage. Since the end user gets something that looks verymuch like paper, training costs are low.

[0025] However, PDF creates large files with little structuralinformation. PDF files are not nearly as flexible as other electronicformats because the main goal is to recreate a paper page, and not toprovide a way of delivering intelligent document structure to a user.There is also little support for searching, although Adobe has otherproducts that can index many different PDF files for cross-documentsearching and navigating (i.e., “turning” pages, “flipping” from sectionto section, and “scanning” the page for text of interest). Other thanthis limited support, navigation is limited. Another problem is pagefidelity. PDF pages are not necessarily pixel-by-pixel replicas of apage that might be printed by the owner of the document. This is partlydue to the fact that the fonts which are used to create the documentoriginally might not be on the machine that eventually views thedocument. It was found desirable, therefore, to come up with a solutionhaving the low cost and simplicity of HTML, the power and flexibility ofSGML, and the pleasing formatting capabilities of PDF. Proponents of the“Extensible Markup Language” or XML, believe that standard fits thebill.

[0026] Just as in HTML, XML makes use of “tags” (i.e., words bracketedby “<” and “>”) and attributes (of the form, e.g., name=“value” ).However, while HTML specifies what each tag and attribute means, andoften how the text between them will look in a browser, XML uses thetags only to delimit pieces of data, and leaves the interpretation ofthe data completely to the application that reads it. In other words, ifone sees “<p>” in an XML file, one should not assume it to be aparagraph. Depending on the context, it may be a price, a parameter, aperson, etc. One distinct advantage of XML, furthermore, is itsextensibility. For example, industry organizations such as theInternational Alliance for Interoperability have promoted such standardsas aecXML™ (a trademark of the aecXML Domain).

[0027] aecXML is a framework for using the XML standard for electroniccommunications in the architectural, engineering and construction (aec)industries. It includes an XML schema to describe information specificto the information exchanges between participants involved in designing,constructing and operating buildings, plants, infrastructure andfacilities. Various software applications used by aecXML participantscan transfer messages formatted according to the aecXML schema tocoordinate and synchronize related project information. Additionally,its specification facilitates e-commerce between suppliers andpurchasers of equipment, materials, supplies, parts and services basedon that same technical information. It would also be desirable,therefore, to provide CAD software usable over the Internet by way ofdynamically rendered web pages using an extensible markup language, suchas XML.

[0028] Another significant drawback to project hosting websites such asProject Point is that they are limited to proprietary drawing fileformats created by AutoCAD (e.g., the DWG and DWF file formats). As aresult, all of the users accessing such websites must run AutoCAD, orthey will not be able to participate in the project. It would,therefore, be desirable to provide CAD software for an Internetenvironment, which is flexible and adapted to multiple drawing fileformats. DWF files, for example, suffer from the disadvantage that theyremove the nonvisual components of a drawing, such as attributes,properties, and complex object behavior. Moreover, the DWG format is anelectronic plot that is view only, so that no matter how many peopleaccess the document, the integrity of the design is preserved. DWF filessupport hyperlinks, and such hyperlinks are usually not limited to datafiles. They can also activate Java applications, scripts, or other DWFfiles.

[0029] Most of the software that is used in engineering workflows today,including MicroStation and AutoCAD, generate project information in theform of files. The data contained in these files is very important tothe engineering enterprise. Accordingly, efficient management andmaintenance of such data has become of paramount concern. Most of theCAD applications in use today, as well as the operating systems that runthem, allow only single-user access to each file. As a result, there iscontention for write access which has greatly influenced today'sengineering workflows. Certain data management tools are available, butthe granularity of the data still remains at the file level. It would behighly desirable, therefore, to provide a system that would allowengineering project data to be stored and managed at the component levelto open up a number of workflow improvements.

[0030] Component-level information management enhances the granularityof project data from files to components. Drawing files, such as DWGfiles and DGN files can be stored as a series of components. As aresult, project data is available at a more granular level. Suchcomponent-based organization, thus, makes it possible to accessinformation on a per-file basis, but manage change on a per-componentbasis. In short, that means that more than one person can edit a file atthe same time. The MicroStation concept of reference files can,therefore, be extended into “shared” files where all users can editproject data at any time.

[0031] Component-level information management journals project changesand provide a reliable project history. When a set of components ischanged in a MicroStation editing session, it is called a transaction.This transaction becomes a necessary process in managing DGN data at acomponent level. The transaction management process provides a “journal”of changes to the components. By “looking back” through the journal,users can access project data as it existed at previous stages ofdevelopment. This concept of a complete project history, thus, becomes avaluable tool for project managers to understand how, when, by whom andwhy decisions were made, and if needed, reverse them.

[0032] Component-level information management leads to bettercoordination of hybrid projects. That is, the concepts ofcomponent-level information management apply not only to MicroStation,but also to other types of engineering files (e.g., those created byAutoCAD. AutoCAD-specific workflows will, thus, gain the same benefitsof simultaneous write access and project history as do MicroStationworkflows. In addition, since many engineering projects involve hybriddata sources, and an amalgamation of both AutoCAD DWG and MicroStationDGN files in the same project, the concepts of component-levelinformation management will allow these hybrid file formats (and, inturn, hybrid workflows) to come together in one efficient andcoordinated environment.

[0033] Conventional project oriented CAD systems and methods onlyprovide textual based information regarding projects, people andbusinesses. Such textual information is difficult to analyze. It isdesirable that a more user-friendly, graphical display means be used toconvey the project-oriented data information. For example, conventionalCAD systems lack geospatial visualization tools or geographicinformation system (GIS) viewing functionality.

[0034] A GIS combines layers of information about a geographic locationto provide an analyst a better understanding of that place. What layersof information are combined depends on the GIS analyst's purpose, suchas, e.g., finding the best location for a new store, analyzingenvironmental damage, viewing similar crimes in a city to detect apattern, and so on. A GIS can include mapping software that linksinformation about where physical things are with information about whatthe physical things are like. Unlike with a paper map, where “what yousee is what you get,” a GIS map combines many layers of information.

[0035] A conventional paper map enables a user to view a pictorialrepresentation of, e.g., cities, roads, mountains, rivers, railroads andpolitical boundaries. For example, conventionally, cities can berepresented by little dots or circles, a road by a black line, amountain peak by a triangle, and a lake by a blue area.

[0036] Similarly to the conventional paper map, a digital map created bya GIS can have dots, or points, representing features on the map such ascities. Lines can also represent features such as roads. Small areas cansimilarly represent features such as lakes. A significant differencebetween the digital map and the conventional paper map is that theinformation used to generate the digital map comes from a computerdatabase of information. The data is shown only if the user chooses toshow it. The data can be selectively layered and viewed. The databasecan store, e.g., where the point is located, how long the road is, andeven how many square miles a lake occupies.

[0037] Each piece of information in the map sits on a layer, and theusers can turn on or turn off the layers according to their needs. Onelayer could be made up of all the roads in an area. Another couldrepresent all the cities. Yet another could represent all the lakes inthe same area.

[0038] Conventional GIS systems include, e.g., the Arclnfo family ofproducts from Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) ofRedlands, CA, and MapInfo available from MapInfo of Troy, NY.Unfortunately, conventional GIS systems are standalone database systems.Conventional GIS systems run on a standalone workstation. Unfortunately,conventional GIS systems do not include web-based collaboration systemsand methods.

[0039] Conventional browser-based project oriented collaboration systemsdo not include any geospatial analysis functionality or viewingcapabilities. Instead these browser-based collaboration systems onlyprovide for viewing of project information in a textual form. What isneeded then is an improved browser-based project oriented collaborationsystem and method that overcomes the shortcomings of conventionalsystems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0040] Accordingly, a feature of the present invention provides improvedsystems, methods and computer program products relating tocomputer-aided design (CAD) software.

[0041] More specifically, the present invention features systems,methods and computer program products by which ECO CAD softwareapplication services may be efficiently provided over the Internet.

[0042] The apparatus, system, method, computer program product andarticle of manufacture described herein achieve the above and otherfeatures, and advantages according to the present invention, whileavoiding the problems described herein above.

[0043] An exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes abrowser-based, geospatial viewer of information relating to aproject-oriented ECO CAD collaboration system.

[0044] Advantageously, the viewer of the present invention can provide ageospatial visualization of project collaboration datasets by spatiallyenabling the project collaboration datasets, by adding a spatialreference to the project collaboration datasets, and by enablingbrowser-based viewing of the project-oriented collaboration system datavia a map.

[0045] In an exemplary embodiment, a user can select a subset list ofproject-oriented collaboration information, from a set list ofproject-oriented collaboration information, where spatial informationhas been associated with the project-oriented collaboration information;the user can then request a geospatially mapped view of the selectedsubset list of project-oriented collaboration information; and a map canbe generated enabling viewing of the geospatially mapped view of theproject-oriented collaboration information.

[0046] In an exemplary embodiment, the project-oriented collaborationinformation can include information such as, e.g., projects, businesses,documents, tasks and people.

[0047] In an exemplary embodiment, the spatial information can include,e.g., a zip code; a user-selected region; an area code; a geographicregion such as, e.g., a country, city, state, county, village, town andborough; a non-geographic region; a political boundary; and a geographiclocation such as, e.g., a 2-dimensional location, and a 3-dimensionallocation.

[0048] Advantageously, by providing a visual representation ofproject-oriented data to users, the present invention's user friendly,intuitive, easy-to-use, point-and-click techniques can be employed forfaster data mining and results.

[0049] Also advantageously, the present invention is designed to allowobjects such as, for example, businesses, projects, documents, tasks,and people, to store geospatial location information and to modifysettings in the project-oriented collaboration system database. The newfunctionality can allow users to “spatialize,” or to provide ageolocation for the objects. For example, users can perform searches orqueries on their project data such as, e.g., “show me all projectswithin 200 miles of this point,” or “where is my project manager inrelation to his staff” or “show me all current projects on a world map.”

[0050] Advantageously, if a project leader wants to set up an “allhands” meeting during a project and wants to see where all the peopleinvolved in a project are located throughout the U.S., the presentinvention can graphically represent the locations of the team membersenabling the project leader to determine a good meeting place. Theproject leader would first click the mapping icon, and a map would popup with the selected people indicated on the map with pushpin icons. Thepushpins are linked back to the collaboration system for easy transitionto the object pages. Users can also then refine a query to include allpeople in a project who are within 200 miles of a ZIP code, to set up aseparate meeting with them.

[0051] According to the present invention, users can visualize projectcollaboration information in ways never before possible through a simplepoint-and-click interface. Rather than having to go into Business Spaceof the collaboration system, for example, and clicking on each objectindividually to see where each is located, instead users can clickadvantageously the mapping icon and get a quick snapshot of all peopleor projects within a certain geographical area.

[0052] In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a Javaviewer including a pure Java viewing application, is tied to theproject-oriented collaboration system such as, e.g., Bentley's Viecon,to access live geospatial data. The Java viewer allows users to displayand manipulate data quickly and easily.

[0053] Other features and advantages, as well as their structure andoperation will become apparent from the following detailed descriptionand accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0054] The foregoing and other features and advantages of the inventionwill be apparent from the following, more particular description of anexemplary embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in theaccompanying drawings.

[0055]FIG. 1A depicts a block diagram of high level Internet-basedproject-oriented computer aided design (CAD) collaboration systemenvironment of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[0056]FIG. 1B depicts a more detailed block diagram of an exemplaryembodiment of a project database of the project-oriented collaborationsystem of the present invention;

[0057]FIG. 1C depicts a graphical user interface (GUI) of an exemplaryembodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) of a global geospatialview of exemplary businesses of a project database of the presentinvention;

[0058]FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI creating a newbusiness according to the present invention;

[0059]FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI illustrating thenewly created business of the present invention;

[0060]FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI including variousprojects which can be associated with the newly created businessaccording to the present invention;

[0061]FIG. 5 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI illustrating ageospatial view of various projects according to the present invention;

[0062]FIG. 6 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI illustrating azoomed-in view of various projects according to the present invention;

[0063]FIG. 7 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a block diagramillustrating interaction between the project-oriented collaborationsystem and other authoring, thin client reviewing, fat clientreviewing/editing and browser-based viewing of the present invention;and

[0064]FIG. 8 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a block diagramillustrative of a computer according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0065] A preferred embodiment of the invention is discussed in detailbelow with reference to accompanying drawings. While specificimplementations are discussed, it should be understood that this is doneso for illustration purposes only. A person skilled in the relevant artwill recognize that other components and configurations may be usedwithout parting from the spirit and scope of the invention. In thedrawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical,functionally similar, and/or structurally similar elements. The drawingin which an element first appears is indicated by the leftmost digits inthe corresponding reference number.

[0066]FIG. 1A depicts a block diagram 100 illustrating a high levelInternet-based project-oriented computer aided design (CAD)collaboration system environment of an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention. Block diagram 100 is adapted to be accessed by aplurality of clients 102 a and 102 b, collectively 102. Such clients102, in turn, suitably comprise one or more conventional personalcomputers, workstations, or other end user devices operating as a “fat”or a “thin” client. It should be understood, nevertheless, that otherclients 102 such as Web-enabled hand-held devices such as, e.g., a PalmVTM organizer manufactured by Palm, Inc., Santa Clara, CaliforniaU.S.A., Windows CE devices, pagers, and “smart” phones, which can use awireless access protocol; and Internet appliances, also fall within thespirit and scope of the present invention.

[0067] Clients 102 of all of the above types can suitably access system100 by way of a network 104 such as, e.g., the global Internet. By useof the term “Internet,” it should be understood that the foregoing isnot intended to limit the present invention to a network also known asthe World Wide Web. It includes corporate networks, private networks,public networks, intranets, extranets, Virtual Private Networks (VPNs),and the like. In any case, a pair of Internet access lines such as,e.g., primary and secondary conventional T3 lines can be cross-connectedfrom the Internet or network 104 backbone to one or more, andpreferably, a pair of redundant routers (not shown). Incoming trafficfrom a first of such routers can then be suitably directed through,e.g., a firewall 106 to a second of such routers. Even more preferably,and for the sake of redundancy, two firewalls 106 could becross-connected (not shown). An exemplary router is the SmartSwitchRouter 8000, available from Enterasys Networks division of CabletronSystems of Andover, Mass. U.S.A. Moreover, an exemplary implementationembodiment can include a firewall 106 such as an IP network applicationplatform such as, e.g., the IP650, IP440, or IP330 firewall platforms,available from Nokia Group of Espoo, Finland.

[0068] Block diagram 100, in an exemplary embodiment can include aplurality of redundant web servers 110 a and 110 b, collectively 110.Web servers 110 can be conveniently load balanced by use of theforegoing configuration. That is, the load of incoming traffic from thenetwork 104, through the routers and firewalls 106, can be balancedamong each of the web servers 110 a, 110 b via, e.g., a load balancer108 a. Load balancing can be performed using any of various methods suchthat: (1) certain incoming traffic can be routed to a particular webserver 110 a, 110 b where that particular web server 110 a, 110 b hadbeen recently used by a given user whose information had been cached onthat particular web server 110 a, 110 b and, as a result, it would bemore efficient to continue to use that particular web server 110 a, 110b; or (2) no single one of the web servers 110 a, 110 b can becomeoverburdened.

[0069] In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, there canbe, e.g., three such web servers 110 a, 110 b. Each of web'servers 110a, 110 b in an exemplary embodiment, in turn, can preferably include aDell™ PowerEdge™ 2450 server (available from Dell Computer Corporationof Austin, Tex. U.S.A.), configured, e.g., with a 733 MHz Pentium IIIprocessor, 256 MB RAM, and dual, mirrored 9.1 GB fixed disk drives.Preferably, each of the web servers 110 a, 110 b can further include aMicrosoft® Windows® NT operating system available from MicrosoftCorporation of Redmond, Wash., U.S.A., and Netscape Enterprise Server,Release 3.6.3 (developed by Netscape Communications, a subsidiary ofAmerica Online, Inc., Dulles, Va. U.S.A.). Optionally, Netscape'sCertificate Server can also be installed on each of the web servers 110a, 110 b to facilitate core digital certificate-issuance and managementservices, as well as distribution of certificates andcertificate-revocation lists to clients and other servers. Other formsof certificate servers (e.g., web certificate servers and wirelesscertificate servers, such as, e.g., those available from VeriSign, Inc.,of Mountain View, Calif. U.S.A.) can likewise be deployed on each of theweb servers 110 a, 110 b.

[0070] Block diagram 100 can further include a plurality of applicationservers 112 a, 112 b, coupled to the web servers 110 a, 110 b. In anexemplary embodiment, a load balancer 108 b is shown balancing workloadacross application servers 112 a, 112 b. In an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention, there can be six such application servers. Eachof the application servers 112 a, 112 b, like the web servers 110 a, 110b, in an exemplary embodiment, can include a Dell PowerEdge 2450 server,configured with a 733 MHz Pentium III processor, 256 MB RAM, and dual,mirrored 9.1 GB fixed disk drives. In an exemplary embodiment, each ofthe application servers 112 a, 112 b can further include a MicrosoftWindows NT operating system, and a Total-e-Business™ platform, developedby Bluestone Software, Inc., Philadelphia, Pa. U.S.A., and including theTotal-e-Business Server (formerly known as “Sapphire/Web”). Bluestone'sUniversal BusinessTM Server, Release 7.0, for example, can, in anexemplary implementation embodiment, be used to manage the ECO CADsystem and methods of the present invention, while running on each ofthe application servers 112 a, 112 b. In an exemplary embodiment, loadbalancers 108 a, 108 b can include Bluestone's Load Balance Broker (LBB)loaded on each of the web servers 110 a, 110 b, to facilitate balancingof the load of communications between each of the web servers 110 a, 110b and each of the application servers 112 a, 112 b.

[0071] When a request within the ECO CAD application is intended for oneof the application servers 112 a, 112 b, the request can go to one ofpotentially many instances of the application, which can reside ondifferent machines. The task of ensuring that simultaneous requests aredistributed evenly across multiple instances, in order to ensureefficient processing, falls to the LBB.

[0072] Coupled to the layer of web servers 110 a, 110 b and applicationservers 112 a, 112 b can be a storage area network (SAN) 114. SAN 114,in an exemplary embodiment, can generally include a cluster server(i.e., not shown) coupled to receive incoming Internet traffic througheach of the application servers 112 a, 112 b, and to transmit outgoingInternet traffic through the routers and firewalls 106, from the SAN 114by way of either a file server or a database server (i.e., not shown).The file server and database server can each preferably include, in anexemplary embodiment, a Sun Enterprise™ 420R server (available from SunMicrosystems, Inc. of Palo Alto, Calif. U.S.A.). In the case of theformer, the file server can further include, e.g., a pair of 450 MHzUltraSPARC-II processors with 2 GB ECC memory. The latter databaseserver, on the other hand, can further include, e.g., four 450 MHzUltraSPARC-II processors with 4 GB ECC memory. Accordingly, both thefile server and database server can preferably run in a Solaris™operating environment. The database server can also preferably include adatabase management system (DBMS) such as, e.g., Oracle 8i™, Release 2.

[0073] In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, SAN 108 caninclude, e.g., a fibre channel switched network or fabric. Such networkscan provide a high-performance, any-to-any interconnect forserver-to-server or server-to-storage traffic. Fibre channel switchednetworks can combine the characteristics of traditional networks (e.g.,large address space, scalability) and input/output (I/O) channels (e.g.,high speed, low latency, hardware error detection) on a singleinfrastructure. Additionally, fibre channel switched networks canfacilitate multiple protocols for networking (e.g., IP), storage (e.g.,SCSI) and messaging (e.g., VIA) over a single infrastructure. Thisinfrastructure can easily be used to create SAN 108, in which peripheraldevices such as disk storage and tape libraries (i.e., not shown) can beattached to the network and shared among attached nodes. Some of thedesirable features of this manner of organizing the servers and storageof the invention described herein follow.

[0074] Fibre channel fabrics such as SAN 114 can provide a switched 100Mbytes/second full duplex interconnect. In addition, block-level I/O canbe handled with remarkable efficiency compared to networking traffic. Asingle SCSI command can transfer many megabytes of data with very littleprotocol overhead, including CPU interrupts. As a result, relativelyinexpensive hosts and storage devices can achieve very good utilizationand throughput on the network. SAN 114 can also use a 24-bit addressingscheme, thereby permitting 16 million devices to be addressed. SAN 114can further include a pair of cross-connected SilkWorm™ fibre channelswitches (available from Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. of SanJose, Calif. U.S.A.).

[0075] Traditional storage interconnects can be limited in the length ofcable that can attach hosts and storage units. Fibre channel can allowslinks up to 10 kilometers, which can vastly increase the options for theserver administrator. SAN 114 can allow a number of servers to usesections of SAN-attached storage devices. The SAN 114 can allow for costefficiencies that come from purchasing storage in large units. Inaddition, this arrangement can make it possible to ensure consistentquality and support across the entire server population. Externalizingthe storage from the server can make it a first class asset in its ownright. Servers can be upgraded while leaving storage in place. Storagecan be added at will and dynamically allocated to servers withoutdowntime. Because the SAN 114 can be extensible, it can allowincremental deployment of features such as fault tolerance and hotbackup sites.

[0076] In an exemplary embodiment, a cluster server can be includedhaving a Veritas Cluster Server™ (available from Veritas SoftwareCorporation, of Mountain View, Calif. U.S.A.). The file server anddatabase server can be redundantly configured. That is, in the eventthat either of the servers goes down during a session, the other canassume control of that session with the assistance of the clusterserver. VERITAS Database Edition™ for Oracle®/HA may, alternatively, beused. As a result, the database service can be composed of one or morelogical network addresses (e.g., IP), RDBMS software, an underlying filesystem, a logical volume manager and a set of physical disks beingmanaged by the volume manager. If this service, typically called aservice group, needed to be migrated to another node for recoverypurposes, all of its resources could migrate together to re-create theservice on another node. A single large node can host any number ofservice groups, each providing a discrete service to networked clientswho may or may not know that they physically reside on a single node.

[0077] Service groups can, thus, be managed to maintain serviceavailability through an intelligent availability management tool. Giventhe ability to test a service group to ensure that it is providing theexpected service to networked clients and an ability to automaticallystart and stop it, such a service group can be made highly available. Ifmultiple service groups are running on a single node, then they must bemonitored and managed independently. Independent management allows aservice group to be automatically recovered or manually idled (e.g., foradministrative or maintenance reasons) without necessarily impacting anyof the other service groups running on a node.

[0078] Application servers 112 a, 112 b, in concert with the web servers110 a, 110 b, file server, database server, and the clients 102, canprovide a three-tiered architecture. As with similar such three-tieredarchitectures, application servers 107 ₁ through 107 _(n) handle most ofthe application processing, such as business logic processing anddatabase integrity processing. The clients 102 can handle interfaceprocessing, while the file server and database server can handledatabase processing. The hardware included as part of the system ofblock diagram 100 can also include a high-availability storagecross-coupled to the file server and database server. One suitable suchhigh-availability storage, in an exemplary embodiment, can include afibre channel switch, a pair of disk controllers, and a pair of diskarrays. Each of the disk controllers can include, in an exemplaryembodiment, a SCSI controller (e.g., a Symbios° SYM53C1010 Ultra160 SCSIcontroller, available from LSI Logic Corporation of Milpitas, Calif.U.S.A.). In an exemplary embodiment, the disk arrays can include twenty36 GB LVD (i.e., low voltage differential) disk drives which areconfigured to be mirrored using, e.g., RAID 0, RAID 1, or RAID 5.Suitable such LVD drives include, for example, the Ultrastar 36ZX harddisk drives available from IBM Corporation of Armonk, N.Y. U.S.A.

[0079] The system of block diagram 100 can further include a tapelibrary (i.e., not shown), which can include a plurality of advancedintelligent tape drives (such as, e.g., AIT2 tape drives) and aplurality of storage positions for the AIT2 tapes. In an exemplaryembodiment, the tape library can include a TLS-4000 automated tapelibrary (available from Qualstar Corporation of Canoga Park, Calif.U.S.A.), which can include up to 12 AIT2 tape drives and can includestorage for at least 60 AIT2 tapes. Such a tape library, furthermore caninclude suitable software (such as, e.g, Veritas Netbackup™) to controlreading and writing of data to the tape library.

[0080]FIG. 1B depicts a more detailed block diagram of an exemplaryembodiment of a project database of the project-oriented collaborationsystem of the present invention. FIG. 1B includes an application server112, shown including a greatly simplified block diagram of an ECO CADapplication for use with the system of block diagram 100 according tothe present invention. The ECO CAD application generally can include auser interface, including, e.g., a “personal space” graphical userinterface GUI, a “business space” GUI, a “project space” GUI, and threebasic user modules. A plurality of additional component-based modules,including, e.g., a documents module, a discussions module, a formsmodule, a calendar module, a schedule module, and a workflow module, areused to provide such additional functionality.

[0081]FIG. 1B further includes the project database 114 coupled toapplication server 112 including various exemplary data components 116.Notably, according to the present invention, geolocation attributes 118can be included and can be associated with any of the data componentobjects 116. For example, a business can include a geolocation attributeassociated with, e.g., a headquarters location and any other businesslocation. Also, various projects can be associated with geolocationattributes such as, e.g., a CAD project for a building could beassociated with the geographic location of the building. Further, peoplewho work collaboratively can chose locations with which to associatethemselves such as, e.g., the locations, including city and state, forexample, where the people work.

[0082]FIG. 1C depicts a graphical user interface (GUI) 120 of anexemplary embodiment of a graphical user interface (GUI) of a globalgeospatial view of exemplary businesses 122 of project database 114 ofthe present invention. In the map view of GUI 120, businesses have beenselected for spatial visualization. Any businesses having geospatialattributes 118 such as, e.g., a zip code; a user-selected region; anarea code; a geographic region such as, e.g., a country, city, state,county, village, town or borough; a non-geographic region; a politicalboundary; and a geographic location such as, e.g., a 2-dimensionallocation, or a 3-dimensional location.

[0083]FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI 200 creating a newbusiness according to the present invention. The geospatial viewer ofGUI 200 includes various exemplary buttons 204, 206, 208, 210, 212, 214,216 and 218, and geospatial location coordinates 224, 226. It will beapparent to those skilled in the art that additional buttons and/orcoordinates can be included within the spirit and scope of theinvention. The map includes business 122.

[0084] Button 204 can be used to create a new business. In the exemplaryembodiment, a business can be represented by a flag icon. It will beapparent to those skilled in the art that any other symbol can also beused. Thus, to create a new business, the user can select button 204with a mouse selection and then can select a location for the newbusiness by clicking on the map at the location of the desired newbusiness. The coordinates 224, 226 of the mouse click can be associatedas a geospatial location attribute 118 of the new business datacomponent. A create new business window 220 can be displayed including,as shown in the exemplary embodiment, a business name field 222 in whichthe user can enter the business name to be created.

[0085] Similarly, to create a new project, button 206 can be selected.In the exemplary embodiment, the new project button 206 can include apushpin icon.

[0086] Other exemplary buttons can also be included such as, e.g., afullscreen window button 210, and a restore window icon 208. A zoom inbutton 212 and a zoom out button 214, as shown, can also be included inan exemplary embodiment. A hand button 216 can be included to enable auser to “click and hold” a map and move the map by moving the mouse in agiven direction. Other button 218 can be used to toggle back to atextual view of the project collaboration system, in an exemplaryembodiment. Additional useful buttons such as, e.g., for printing, formarking a selection area, or otherwise can be included, as well asconventional pull-down menu item functions, as will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art.

[0087]FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUTI 300 illustratingthe newly created business represented by flag 302 created using GUI 200including entering “Whistler Developments” into field 222 of create newbusiness window 220 of FIG. 2 of the present invention. Selection with amouse click of button 218 can cause the GUI 400 of FIG. 4 to bedisplayed.

[0088]FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI 400 includingvarious projects 408 a, 408 b, 408 c. The projects 408 a, 408 b, 408 ccan be created using a button 206 of GUI 300. The projects 408 a, 408 b,408 c can be associated with the newly created business 302 according tothe present invention. As shown, a user can view a project list byselecting button 402. To select another business, button 404 can beselected. To view a list of personal items, button 406 can be selected.

[0089] In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, any of theprojects 408 a, 408 b, and 408 c can be selected by mouse selection of aradio button 408 a-c. To geospatially view the projects, the user canselect button 410 in an exemplary embodiment. To better view thelocation of the projects selected, (assuming geospatial locationattributes are available for the projects), the user could also considerzooming in using button 212 of GUI 300.

[0090]FIG. 5 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI 500 illustrating ageospatial view of various projects 508 a, 508 b, and 508 c according tothe present invention. The geospatial location of the projects 508 a,508 b, and 508 c can always be changed by dragging and dropping theicons at a different location, in an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention. In one exemplary embodiment, rights to change geospatiallocation of businesses and/or projects, etc. can be controlled, orreserved to an administrator, or other user with change privileges. Uponselection of a zoom in button 212, a zoomed-in representation can bedisplayed as shown in FIG. 6.

[0091]FIG. 6 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a GUI 600 illustrating azoomed-in view of various projects 508 a, 508 b, and 508 c, according tothe present invention. Additional new projects can be added using newproject pushpin button 206. To represent people, another button can beadded for adding new people to a geospatial view.

[0092]FIG. 7 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a block diagramillustrating interaction between the project-oriented collaborationsystem including project database 114 and other authoring workstations701 a, thin client reviewing workstation 721, a fat clientreviewing/editing workstation 701 b, and a browser-based electronic plot(e-plot) viewing browser (not numbered) of the present invention.

[0093]FIG. 8 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a block diagram 800illustrative of a computer according to the present invention. Thecomputer of FIG. 8 is representative of a computer as could be used as aclient computer 102 a, 102 b, web servers 110 a, 110 b, routers,firewalls 106, load balancers 108 a, 110 b, application servers 112 a,112 b, and storage area network (SAN) 114. Computer 800 includes one ormore processors 802 coupled to a bus 804. The bus 804 can be coupled toany of various subsystems including, e.g., as shown, a main memory 806,and a secondary memory 808 such as, e.g., a disk 810, and/or a removablestorage drive 812 into which media 814 can be placed including, e.g., adiskette, a compact diskette, or the like; an input device such as,e.g., a mouse 816, or a keyboard 818; an output device such as, e.g., adisplay 820 or printer (not shown); and an input/output (I/O) device tonetwork 104 such as, e.g., network interface card (NIC) 822 such as,e.g., an Ethernet, Token Ring, or Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) card,or a modem 824, or other device such as, a wireless transceiver. It willbe apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that the abovedescribed computer has been provided as an example and is not intendedto limit the breadth of the invention in any way.

[0094] In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, thegeospatial enabled ECO CAD application according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention can include, e.g., two separatecomputer programs: (1) a server program on a server side 112 a of theapplication; and (2) a client program on a client 102 side of theapplication. The two programs can be loaded into memory and executed ona single computer; or they may be loaded on two different computersconnected together by a computer network; or they may be combined into asingle program. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, thegeospatial project-oriented viewer is Internet enabled, or web-enabled,including a JAVA applet or pure JAVA viewer which can in one embodimentbe browser-based. The spatially enabled project collaboration system ofthe present invention, can provide a backoffice tool set which can beused by a user to populate the project database with geospatial locationattribute 118 information.

[0095] The server program, in an exemplary embodiment can be the centralhub not only for controlling access to the project data, but also forcoordinating and recording changes to that project data. It can execute,in an exemplary embodiment, on each of the plurality of applicationservers 112 a, 112 b shown in FIG. 1A. For any given ECO project, thereis one particular server program that is available over the computernetwork. The server program can create, open, operate on, and maintain acomponent database (CDB), which can be associated with a project in thedisk arrays of SAN 114 shown in FIG. 1. In an exemplary embodiment, theCDB can include a single file or a controlled collection of files thatcan contain various components that can be included in a current versionof the project. However, a CDB can also be some other form of long-termstorage facility (e.g., a structured store or a relational database).The server program can also create, open, operate on and maintain ahistory file, which can contain a list of all changes to componentsduring the project. No other program or computer need directly accessthe CDB or the history file. Instead, users on individual clientcomputers 102 of FIG. 1 can execute as follows.

[0096] Client programs can execute locally on an individual projectparticipant's client computer 102. A client program can usually find thelocation and name of a server program through an external registry ofsuch known servers, and can make a connection using standard networksocket techniques. The registry can preferably be a simple text-basedfile on the known shared file server, containing a list of availableprojects and information necessary to establish a connection to aparticular server program. Once the client 102 has located a serverprogram, the client program can create a network connection between thetwo computers using standard protocols, such as, e.g., the transmissioncontrol point/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) protocols. The connection canremain open for some period of time, and all communications betweenclient and server can be made through the connection. If, for somereason, the connection is broken, the client program can automaticallyattempt to reconnect to the server program.

[0097] In addition, if a plurality of projects are resident on one ormore of the application servers 112 a, 112 b shown in FIG. 1, but only asubset of those projects are “active” at a time, then a third programmay run on those application servers 112 a, 112 b called a serverinstigator program. The role of the server instigator program can be toreceive requests from a client program for a server program for anygiven project, and can return the location of that server program if itis already active. Otherwise, the server instigator program can activatethe server program and can then return its location to the requestingclient program.

[0098] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the systemcan be implemented using the viecon.com project database available fromBentley, Inc. of Exton, Pa., U.S.A. It can be readily appreciated thatthe true power of the ECO CAD application is in the sum of its parts. Itcan provide an integrated, comprehensive offering of project-orientedbrowser based collaboration tools and technology to help a user succeedin a user's projects, now further enabled to support populating theviecon database with spatial data associated with businesses, projectsand people. For members, various tools may be licensed, e.g., on aper-user, per-project or per-month basis. Using Viecon Platforms, userscan deploy similar functionality in their organization and integrate itwith their existing back office systems such as EDM, ERP or EIMapplications.

[0099] The ECO CAD application can also provide project extranetresources, which can allow the user to: (1) store, share, synchronizeand secure content (e.g., documents; models; drawings (DGN, DWG, DXF,IGES, ACIS, SAT, CGM, GRD); specifications; photos; animations;renderings; and sound); (2) collaborate through online meetings orsharing applications; (3) communicate by way of threaded discussions,forms, and E-mail; (4) manage (i.e., everything has an activity log and,thereby, facilitates automatic version control, project calendar andscheduling, task management, team directories, full access control, andsecure sockets layer (SSL) encryption); (5) put the project in itsproper context by including news, weather, maps, services, and support;(6) utilize industry links to materials, professional organizations, andindustry publications; and (7) view data geospatially on a map visuallyillustrating geographically project-oriented data. In short, the ECO CADapplication can offer powerful applications for content, communicationand collaboration in a secure, hosted environment.

[0100] Referring again to FIGS. 1B and 7, it can be seen that the ECOCAD application can include a electronic plot module, an interchangetranslation module, and a review module.

[0101] The Plot module can provide a means of viewing drawings over theInternet. Integrated with any MAPI compliant E-mail system, such asMicrosoft Exchange, the plot module can allow users to E-mail electronicplots to members of the user's extended work team, such as customers andsuppliers who do not have access to MicroStation or AutoCAD. Theinterchange module can enable CAD administrators in charge of aworkgroup's project data to manage various file formats. Interchange cansimplify the process of maintaining synchronized design data byautomating the conversion of between files of different formats. Thereview module can enable simple, accurate, standalone viewing by projectreviewers. Team members who require design review capabilities can do sowithout altering design data and without purchasing additional softwarelicenses. A user can extend the use of live engineering project drawingsand models throughout the enterprise without affecting the user's bottomline. Moreover, team members can use this viewing tool for the entirelife of the project.

[0102] A user of the plot module merely defines the plot area using aview or fence. Then, the user can compose a recipient list usingInternet E-mail addresses, local mailing lists, or a combination ofboth. A short note may then be added to the E-mail. Finally, the usercan send the eplot to a recipient as illustrated in FIG. 7. A plotpublisher contained within the plot module can automatically create acompact viewable electronic plot file, which can then be sent to one ofthe application servers 112 a, 112 b. At the same time, the plot modulecan also send out an E-mail message to everyone on the user's recipientlist. This E-mail can inform the recipients that they have received aEplot, and can provide the recipients with the Internet location (URL)where the eplot can be viewed. There are no complex plug-ins or viewersto install. The recipient simply clicks on the link in his/her E-mail,automatically connecting to the plot module in the browser using acompact yet powerful Java viewer.

[0103] Using a viewer portion of the plot module, users can accuratelymeasure distances, zoom in and out on various areas of the designwithout degradation of detail and change level or layer settings. Apublishing client of the plot module, in an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention, can include: (1) MicroStation/J V07.00.01.11 orlater; (2) Internet Explorer V4 or later; and (3) for address booksupport, a MAPI complaint E-mail system is required. Otherwise, if noMAPI compliant E-mail system is present, the publisher can be limited tousing Internet E-mail addresses. A viewing client of plot module caninclude: (1) Internet Explorer V4 or later; or (2) Netscape NavigatorV4.08 or later. Further details regarding the plot module 205 can befound in U.S. Ser. No. 09/586,786, filed concurrently herewith, for a“System, Method and Computer Program Product for Generating a ViewableComputer Aided Design (CAD) Eplot” (Attorney Docket No. 36488-160032).

[0104] CAD administrators in charge of a workgroup's project data oftendeal with various file formats. The interchange module can simplify theprocess of maintaining synchronized design data by automating theconversion of between files of different formats. Interchange can run inthe background and can search a specified source folder/directory andits subfolders/subdirectories for input in one format (e.g.,MicroStation design files) and can convert any designs updated since thelast time the interchange module checked to a different format file(e.g., AutoCAD) in a target folder/directory. The interchange module cancompare the date and time of all of the source files against theircorresponding destination counterparts. A database can be continuallymaintained in the disk arrays of SAN 114 with information on sourcefiles and their dependencies, such as MicroStation BASIC settings filesused for data conversion, attached reference files, etc. It canautomatically create a new destination file when either the source fileor one of its dependencies is changed. Source files that are alreadysynchronized with their respective destination file are left alone.

[0105] In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the interchangemodule can support the following combinations of design data: (1) DGN toDWG; (2) DGN to DXF; (3) DWG to DGN; (4) and DXF to DGN. Interchange isa standalone utility. That is, downloading and installation on a hostcomputer is required. Further details regarding the interchange modulecan be found in U.S. Ser. No. 09/586,786, filed concurrently herewith,for a “System and Method to Maintain Real-Time Synchronization of DataIn Different Formats” (Attorney Docket No. 36488-160120).

[0106] The review module can provide the following functions: (1)complete and accurate access to 2-D and 3-D designs for 100 percentgraphical binary compatibility with other various engineering products;(2) independent, resizable, always-active views; (3) support of existingworkspaces; (4) AutoCAD DWG support, including AutoCAD 2000; (5) zoom;(6) pan; (7) print; (8) level/layer control; (9) QuickVision GL realtime rendering; (10) fly through 3-D models; (11) redlining; and (12)“Save as” DWG/DGN conversion. It is available in either of two versions:(1) targeted functionality in an easy, efficient download; and (2)comprehensive functionality, in a full-function download. Furtherdetails regarding the operation of the review module can be found inviecon.Review User's Guide, publication currently available from BentleySystems, Inc., which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

[0107] As noted herein above, the ECO CAD application according to thepresent invention is component-based. In the preferred embodiment ofthis invention, the component-based ECO CAD application is configuredaccording to an XML schema.

[0108] Basic use of the ECO CAD application is now described. If theuser is a user, the site appears differently than if the user is aproject administrator. No matter who the user is, the site isconstructed to lead the user through the process of establishing andmaintaining a project as quickly and easily as possible. At each step,tools are provided to ensure that all interested parties are keptinformed of all communications, both verbal and graphic. Even peopleoutside the immediate project list can be kept informed with tools thatallow the user to send design information over the Web to users withoutCAD tools or related experience.

[0109] With centralized drawing storage and off-site record keeping,complex projects take up little local disk space. And because projectsare stored off-site, the user gets protection from local network outagesand an assured backup scheme. All users have constant access to the mostcurrent data, all the time.

[0110] By entering basic contact information, project team membersobtain first-level access to the site. This information can includegeospatial location information such as the address of the team member.This gateway is also the first level of security, so that access to auser's proprietary design data is limited to only those users who areauthorized to see the data. Following the registration process, the useris given an assigned passwords and other permissions that can provideunique project-level identification and grant the user access to thesuite of tools on the site.

[0111] Once logged in, the user can be presented with a calendar-basedpage that can allow the user to view all of the current activities inwhich the user is involved. Listed on the Personal Space calendar pagecan be: (1) milestones; (2) documents; (3) tasks; (4) interactivecollaboration tools; (5) administrative tools; (6) other tools; (7)security and data integrity; (8) weather and news. A key to productivitycan be ensuring that all project members are aware of overall projectstatus, and the key dates for all tasks and subprojects. By trackingproject status, the user can achieve substantial cost savings byavoiding (and planning around) any potential conflicts and bettercontrol all schedule-driven activities. For example, site deliveries canbe scheduled so that there is physical space for the loads and there areno onsite traffic jams. Further, if the interior studs have not yet beenplaced, then it may be too early for the electrical and plumbingcontractors to begin work. Documents can include, e.g.: (1) CAD files;(2) text; (3) audio; and (4) video. Other images can be quickly added toa project. Even entire directory trees can be dragged and dropped. Onceentered, the images or directories can fall under the ECO CADapplication version control system for check out/in.

[0112] The user's personal space can allow the user to: (1) personalizethe user's Project Space in order to track a project's progress andcommunicate with others. It can also be used to alter the look and feelof the user's space to suit the way the user works while still adheringto the guidelines established by the project. The personal space canalso permit the user to view document history i.e., go back in time tosee when and how decisions were made. Furthermore, the personal spacecan permit the user to track activity. The user can check on theprogress of others, with at-a-glance status allowing the user to spotand react to potential schedule creep, before critical path time linesare affected. Personal space also permits the user to propagateinformation. Data is instantly distributed to all affected members on aproject.

[0113] The user can also manage the user's project list, to minimizeredundancy and reduce the information flow where necessary withcustom-defined task and human resource lists. Additionally, the user cancontrol access, such that restricted information is just that. Detailed,proprietary cost information can thus be made accessible only to thespecified level of management users. The user can quickly see whatdocuments changed since the user last viewed the site. Any changeflagged as New could be a change in status, an additional posting to aDiscussion Group, a revised drawing, or a new group member. Tools cansend E-mail based on user-defined triggers. Users can elect (or beelected) to receive notification based on event occurrences. Triggerscan include, e.g., milestones, calendar dates, new drawings, updateddrawings, status changes, added documents, deleted documents, onlinemeetings, Webex meetings, projects or sub-projects that have reachedcompletion, missed deadlines and members removed (job change, transfer,leave). As not all events require an immediate response, a user can alsotailor the notice to match the importance of the event. A user can alsomaintain the user's schedule through schedule module, which can providea suite of tools to establish and publish project timelines, due dates,and parallel and concurrent tasks. The user can also estimate projectcompletion time by summing the serial tasks, establish serial tasks, andestablish task sequence.

[0114] All of the Document Tools can be designed to provide a continuousflow of information. The user can post projects by adding information,attaching drawings, starting discussions, or adding milestones. Theproject posts can be available at both the Project and User level. Theuser can also view project data. Users without CAD system access andexperience can view and review the CAD data. Redlining tools can focusdiscussion on the precise areas of concern; for example, does this ductpass through a wall? Will the electrical conduits fit in the givenspace? The user can also use text-based tools, because threadeddiscussions can provide a continuous stream of information in a purelyinteractive model.

[0115] A user can also conduct online meetings with Webex. When staticdrawings are not enough, a user can meet on the Web and can save ontransportation costs. Webex can allow users to share out their terminalso that all participants, across the country or around the world caninstantly see the same image. All the while and at the same time, thetelephone access can allow participants to freely share their thoughtsand concerns. A user can participate in discussion groups by way of thediscussions module. All project members can share and update discussionson all current project issues. This forum can also support a full rangeof listing and searching options, so the user can easily determine whosaid what and when. Finally, the user can access a project directory tosearch the list of project members and see who is attached to whatproject, what their contact information is, what business group theybelong to, and more.

[0116] Other tools are available to the user. For example, a powerfulsearch engine can be provided which allows the user to quickly locateany document or keyword. Other search options allow the user to specifydocuments by project, status, and other time-dependent parameters.Project navigation tools provide a common tool frame which allows theuser to insert, delete, update, link, and modify projects. A formsdesigner provided through forms module can permit the user to quicklyand easily create custom forms. To speed the process, the user can beginwith an existing form and then build from there by adding, modifying, orremoving fields.

[0117] Context-sensitive HTML help can also provide fast assistance.Project members can have access to a complete suite of downloadabletools for viewing and sending drawings, including, e.g.: (1) a DGN/DWGtranslation utility; (2) a tool to create digital virtual plots sent viaE-mail; and (3) a read-only tool with redlining capability.

[0118] The ECO CAD application can also facilitate multi-level accesscontrol. The user's data is safe because site access is controlled onseveral levels. SSL and password protections can ensure that onlyauthorized parties enter the site. Individual privileges for read-only,read-Write can be provided in a particular Project area. Read-writeprivileges for the entire project can be strictly controlled and easilyadministered. Multi-level access control can also provide controlleddownloads. While downloads are freely available to site members, eachtool can require licensing.

[0119] Various modifications of the methods and systems disclosed hereinabove are possible without departing from the true spirit and scope ofthe present invention. It should be understood, therefore, that withinthe scope of the following claims, the present invention may bepracticed otherwise than as has been specifically described in theforegoing embodiments.

What is claimed is:
 1. An online system for providing engineering, construction, and operations (ECO) computer-aided design application services, comprising: a computer network, including server means and a plurality of clients each of which is adapted to be connected to said server means over said network; means for operating said server means and said plurality of clients, said operating means supporting a runtime environment for the ECO application on said network; graphical user interface means adapted to be displayed on said plurality of clients, said graphical user interface means including a plurality of personalized spaces; a database storing a plurality of files, including engineering documents and drawings, with a plurality of different file formats; a plurality of collaborative modules, each of which is adapted to be run over said network, said collaborative modules including: means for accessing said engineering documents and drawings; and means for managing an engineering document; and means for viewing at least one of a business, a project, a task, a document, and a person, geospatially according to geospatial attributes.
 2. The system according to claim 1, further comprising: means for translating drawings of one of said plurality of file formats to another of said plurality of file formats; means for mirroring said database drawings of said one of said plurality of file formats with said other of said plurality of file formats; and means for sharing translation settings used by said translating means.
 3. The system according to claim 1, wherein said server means comprises: a plurality of web servers; a plurality of application servers, each of which is connected to said plurality of web servers; a file server connected between said database and each of said plurality of application servers; and a database server connected between said database and each of said plurality of application servers.
 4. The system according to claim 3, further comprising means for clustering said file server and said database server.
 5. The system according to claim 1, wherein each of said plurality of files is stored in said database as a series of components.
 6. The system according to claim 5, wherein each said series of components includes an element defining a unique identification.
 7. The system according to claim 6, wherein said series of components further define a plurality of objects.
 8. The system according to claim 7, further comprising a state server connected to each of said plurality of application servers, wherein said state server is adapted to maintain a state of an instance of each of said plurality of objects.
 9. The system according to claim 1, further comprising: means for composing a view of an engineering drawing and any data embedded therein; means for listing a plurality of intended recipients of said view; means for plotting said view into a file; means for storing said plotted file as a universal resource locator on a Web-based server; means for transmitting a message to each of said plurality of intended recipients, said message including a link to said universal source locator; means for modifying said file and create a new version thereof which is capable of executing automatically upon download; and means for downloading said new version of said file to each of said plurality of intended recipients selecting said link, whereby said new version of said file executes and enables said view to be viewed.
 10. A method of providing application services for an engineering, construction, and operations (ECO) application, comprising the steps of: providing a computer network, including one or more servers, each of which is adapted to be accessed by a plurality of clients over said network; providing means for operating said one or more servers, which supports a runtime environment for the ECO application on said network; providing a graphical user interface which is adapted to be displayed on said plurality of clients, said graphical user interface including a plurality of personalized spaces; providing a database for storing a plurality of files, including engineering documents and drawings, with a plurality of different file formats, each of said plurality of files being stored in said database as a series of components; providing a plurality of collaborative modules, each of which is adapted to be run over said network, said collaborative modules including: means for accessing said engineering documents and drawings; and means for managing an engineering document; controlling access to the ECO application such that only those clients authorized to use the ECO application for a given project are permitted access to said project; and means for viewing at least one of a business, a project, a task, a document, and a person, geospatially according to geospatial attributes.
 11. The method according claim 10, further comprising the step of adapting said collaborative modules for use by a thin client.
 12. The method according to claim 10, further comprising the step of adapting said collaborative modules for use by a fat client.
 13. The method according to claim 10, further comprising the step of adapting said collaborative modules for use by a thin client and a fat client.
 14. A computer-readable medium, comprising: a first code segment for providing a graphical user interface to a database storing a plurality of files, including engineering documents and drawings, with a plurality of different file formats, each of said plurality of files being stored as a series of components; a second code segment for accessing said engineering documents and drawings; a third code segment for managing an engineering document; a fourth code segment for managing a discussion; a fifth code segment for managing a form; a sixth code segment for managing time; and a seventh code segment means for viewing at least one of a business, a project, a task, a document, and a person, geospatially according to geospatial attributes.
 15. The computer-readable medium according to claim 14, wherein said first code segment comprises: means for providing a first personalized space adapted to be personalized for a specific user; means for providing a second personalized space adapted to be personalized for a specific business; and means for providing a third personalized space adapted to be personalized for a specific project.
 16. The computer-readable medium according to claim 14, wherein said second code segment further comprises: means for translating drawings of one of said plurality of file formats to another of said plurality of file formats; means for mirroring said database drawings of said one of said plurality of file formats with said other of said plurality of file formats; and means for sharing translation settings used by said translating means.
 17. The computer-readable medium according to claim 14, wherein said second code segment further comprises: means for composing a view of an engineering drawing and any data embedded therein; means for listing a plurality of intended recipients of said view; means for plotting said view into a file; means for storing said plotted file as a universal source locator on a Web-based server; means for transmitting a message to each of said plurality of intended recipients, said message including a link to said universal source locator; means for modifying said file and create a new version thereof which is capable of executing automatically upon download; and means for downloading said new version of said file to each of said plurality intended recipients selecting said link, whereby said new version of said file auto-executes enabling said view to be viewed.
 18. The computer-readable medium according to claim 14, wherein said sixth code segment further comprises: means for rendering a calendar of events; means for scheduling an event; means for managing a workflow within a project including said engineering documents and drawings.
 19. A system for viewing project-oriented data relating to engineering, construction, and operations (ECO) computer-aided design (CAD) services online comprising: a browser-based geospatial viewer operative to enable geospatial viewing of data according to geospatial attributes associated with said data; and a browser-based project-oriented, ECO CAD collaboration system.
 20. The system according to claim 19, wherein said data comprises at least one of: a business, a project, a task, a document, and a person. 